Food pop-up and bar in Christmas Steps gets premises licence after co-director’s apology over private party
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A food pop-up and bar whose bid to open later was refused last summer has been granted a new premises licence despite opposition from neighbours.
Councillors rejected The Scrandit’s application in June 2021 for being “not carefully thought out” amid dozens of objections from residents and concerns from environmental health about noise from a rear garden terrace.
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Hide AdBut after the venue in Christmas Steps scaled back its proposed hours, scrapped plans to expand its activities, including live music, and agreed conditions with police and the local authority pollution control team, Bristol City Council’s licensing sub-committee has now given the go-ahead.
The committee also heard from the co-director, who apologised for disturbance from a private party at the site in December.
Solicitor Ewen Macgregor, representing The Scrandit, said the pop-up had run 24 events under temporary event notices (TENs) in the last two to three months “without incident whatsoever” and the hours were the same as those applied for.
He said that since last year’s refusal, the owners had “taken their medicine” and time to reconsider, sought fresh advice and had come back with a much better application.
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Hide AdUnlike last time there were no representations from any of the authorities, including the police, environmental health and nighttime enforcement officer, Mr Macgregor said.
He told the hearing on Thursday, January 27: “The hours we are asking for are more restrictive than those applied for in June.
“This is a significantly different and more clearly thought through application. The representations are quite different and fewer than in June.”
Mr Macgregor said it would be a food-led establishment, not a pub, and conditions agreed in advance included closing the garden by 7.30pm.
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Hide Ad“They have been operating since April 2021, in the day as a cafe and in the evenings for street food pop-ups and start-ups,” he added.
Co-director Josh Dickinson apologised for the private party he held there with 15 to 20 friends on December 22 which caused nuisance to neighbours.
“I am deeply sorry. It wasn’t the right thing to do and it won’t happen again,” he said.
“I’ve learned my lesson. I have spoken directly to anyone directly affected. That was not a representation of how we operate.”
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Hide AdHe said a lot of noise was generated by just a couple of people smoking outside the front which was “not acceptable” and that the party ended following complaints from residents.
The panel granted the application to open inside until 10.30pm daily with the bar shutting at 10pm – an hour earlier than last summer’s application – with an additional condition that the premises must be primarily food-led.
Councillors also initially imposed a condition that alcohol could only be sold in the garden to customers having a sit-down meal, but they removed it after Mr Macgregor said this had not been suggested during the hearing so he had not had chance to respond to it and should have.
After members reconvened the hearing “in the interests of fairness”, the solicitor said: “The condition that the premises operates primarily as a food-led business is fine and sits with the style of operation.
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Hide Ad“In terms of only allowing people in the garden to drink if they are sat down and having a table meal, that is not acceptable.”
He said many of the pop-up vendors served street food which customers might not sit down to eat and that the condition would mean a friend of a group who were already eating in the garden could not join them if they only wanted a drink, which happened often under the TENs with no problems.
The sub-committee accepted a replacement condition from Mr Macgregor that there must be 30 seats in the garden whose maximum capacity would be 40 people.
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